Land Bank Authority

Rome/Floyd Land Bank Authority Minutes Friday, February 16, 2024 8:30 AM Carnegie Building Training Room Present: Members: David Clonts, LaDonna Collins, J.R. Davis, David Mathis, Rob Ware Staff: Amanda Carter, Logan Drake, Bekki Fox Others: Harry Brock, Bruce Ivey, Dylan Nelson, Toni Rhinehart, Glen Rubin Welcome and Call to order: Chairman David Mathis called the meeting to order at 8:35 AM. A quorum was established. Nomination/Election of Chairman and Vice Chairman Mathis asked for any nominations for Chairman and Vice Chairman for 2024. David Clonts motioned to nominate Mathis for Chairman and Lowery May for Vice Chairman. May was unable to attend but already agreed to serve if nominated. Hearing no other nominations, Rob Ware seconded the motion. Motion carried thus electing Mathis and May. Resignation: Harry Brock gave his official resignation as member of the Rome/Floyd Land Bank Authority (LBA) Board. While he can no longer serve due to his recent election to the Rome City Commission, he still hopes to be as involved and supportive as he can. The Board thanked him for his contributions to the LBA over the years. Mathis asked that people let Bekki Fox or Amanda Carter know who they think would be a good fit to serve on the Board in Brock’s place. Carter stated that people can fill out a LBA Board application, which would then be sent to the Committee on Committees for review. Staff will keep everyone updated. Approval of Minutes: Mathis asked for any corrections to the January minutes. Hearing none, Rob Ware motioned to approve the minutes, which was seconded by Clonts. Motion carried. Financial Report: The financial report was distributed for review and presented by Dylan Nelson from City Finance. He gave information on the following: active properties, the cash balance as of January 31st and the YTD property taxes collected. Property Updates: Carter provided property updates. The Board previously discussed having ProActive Contractors under contract for the next two home builds, which will be located at 411 Superba Avenue (K13X195) and 604 Pennington Avenue (I14W563). Staff obtained signatures for both the contract and contractor’s Notice to Proceed. The estimate of values was attached. The Notice to Proceed includes the six-month time limit to have both homes completed, which would be August 16, 2024. Proactive will begin grading soon. As previously approved, Staff and Jett Law Firm are working on clearing 151 Agnes Street (I15W175) and 14 Morningside Drive (J14L251). Neither property was redeemed before the Barment deadline so Jett will draft Quiet Title soon. Updates will be given later. Jett has been completing her work in above-average time. Much progress has been made regarding the home builds at 7 Forsyth Street (J13J165) and 1 Orchid Place (J14O113). Carter provided details and photos for each. Forsyth’s drywall will be started next week. All agreed that the front porch needs railing. Orchid’s final cleaning will take place soon. Final pictures will be taken soon so the property can hopefully be advertised online next week. Open House will take place soon. The Commissioners will be invited to tour the home. Updates will be given later. The owner of the previously discussed 32 Old Airport Road (H13W152) stated that she was not interested in selling the property at this time but would call if she ever changes her mind. Other potential properties in West Rome will continue to be looked at. As directed by the Board, Staff visited the two businesses adjacent to 607 Excelsior Street (I13K024), which is owned by the LBA. A For Sale sign was posted and Staff did speak with both business owners. The owner of the auto repair shop stated he was in the process of purchasing all lots (owned by Robert Burton and Donald Sawyer) on Excelsior and Division Street. He has already started clearing the property. Staff attempted to reach the previous owner of 607 Excelsior Street to advise them on the proper steps to get the property back in order to sell. Instructions, including reaching out to the Tax Commissioner, have been given. At this point in time, the Board will not consider any applications on this lot. Executive Session & Action Items: J.R. Davis motioned to close the meeting and enter into Executive Session, which was seconded by Ware. Motion carried. The following items were presented to the Board. After discussion, Ware motioned to enter regular session again, which was seconded by Clonts. Motion carried. No votes were taken in Executive Session. The outcomes are listed as follows: • 2024 LBA Draft Budget The Board reviewed the 2024 LBA draft budget. Discussion was had. Changes can be made. Staff will send out a copy of the 2023 budget for review and comparison. The Board is free to call or email any questions they might have. It will be approved at the next planning session in April. • E. 20th Street Clearing Staff received a price quote from Purdy Land Pros to clear most of the brush and wooded area in the rear of 303 E. 20th Street (J15X153), 305 E. 20th Street (J15X152), 307 E. 20th Street (J15X151), and 309 E. 20th Street (J15X150). Purdy would grind/clear underbrush and remove any debris to the landfill for a line total of $5,440. Due to safety concerns with the homeless encampment, Purdy included Rome City Police observing the work area for $50 an hour for a minimum of four hours a day. With a $400 unit price per lot, that line total would be $1,600. The additional dump fee would be $100 per load plus $38 per ton. All agreed that the project can go up to $7,500 depending on what is included or deemed necessary. Staff will look into options involving having a police presence at the job site. Concerning a similar quote for work at 712 E. Boundary Street (J14O314), the Board can either vote through email or meet in person if necessary. After discussion, the Board acted as follows: o Ware motioned to approve the provided quote up to $7,500, which was seconded by Davis. Motion carried.  • 14 Morningside Drive (J14L251) The Board reviewed an application submitted by Cory Brown for the purchase of the 0.2 acre, LBA-owned lot located at 14 Morningside Drive. Brown’s offer for Parcel J14L251 is $10,500 or $6,000 plus clearing title fees, whichever is greater. He plans to develop a single-family home to use as his personal residence. This is his grandparents’ neighborhood so there is significant sentimental value attached. The LBA is currently clearing the title. The lot’s value is $15,218. Clonts abstained from voting considering Brown used to work for him. After discussion, the Board acted as follows: o LaDonna Collins motioned to approve Cory Brown’s offer of $10,500 or $6,000 plus clearing title fees, whichever is greater, for Parcel J14L251, which was seconded by Ware. Motion carried. • 0 Beverly Drive (I13L321) The Board did not review an offer submitted for 0 Beverly Drive due to the applicant withdrawing their application. The applicant was unaware that Parcel I13L321 is located in a flood zone and has a creek running through the rear of the property. They stated they will instead look at the list of available properties and contact Staff if they are interested in anything else. Discussion Items: Code Enforcement suggested to the owner of 10 South Blanche Avenue SW that they reach out to the LBA to gauge any interest in acquiring their property. The owner reached out to Staff saying they are open to anything. Parcel JA4L144 is 0.18 acres, zoned H-T-R, has a value of $22,130, and is adjacent to a vacant County-owned property. In 2016, they paid $9,900 for the property. Code Enforcement has been working with them to get the home cleaned up as it is in violation. The owner has been taken to court a couple of times and is scheduled to go back the following week. Glen Rubin from Code Enforcement provided the Board with details and advice. The Board discussed whether they could help the owner out through purchase, donation, advice, etc. The home’s exterior is in better shape than the interior. If the home were demoed, the LBA would need to pay for it. If the LBA purchased it, there would be no fines. Rubin will hold off on all fines as the owner is working with the land bank. After discussion, the Board acted as follows: o Clonts motioned to speak to the owner/tell them to list the home, and if it is not listed or does not sell within 60 days, the LBA will offer up to $10,000, which was seconded by Davis. Motion carried. The previously discussed Georgia Tech Planning studio opportunity was brought up. A Zoom meeting was recently held with Aaron Fortner from Georgia Tech. The meeting went well, and Fortner is interested in working with the LBA. Carter will follow up with him. Last month, the Board approved Elijah Collins’ Neighborhood Beautification Grant application to receive gutter/soffit repair on his home. Both Collins and the contractor have signed all paperwork. Work will begin soon. Adjourn: There will be no regular meeting in March. The regular meeting scheduled for April 5th will instead be a planning session. The meeting will take place at 8:30 AM like usual and be at least two hours long. There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 10:21 AM. Respectfully submitted, Logan Drake Recording Secretary